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Steve Jobs (2015 film)
Steve Jobs is a 2015 American biographical film based on the life of Apple Inc. co-founder Steve Jobs, starring Michael Fassbender in the title role. The film is directed by Danny Boyle, with a screenplay by Aaron Sorkin inspired by Walter Isaacson's biography Steve Jobs, as well as interviews conducted by Sorkin. The film premiered at the 2015 Telluride Film Festival on September 5, 2015, and began a limited release in New York and Los Angeles on October 9, 2015. It opened nationwide in the U.S. on October 23, 2015. Plot The film is divided into three acts set in the lead-up to key product launches hosted by Apple co-founder Steve Jobs (Fassbender). The first depicts Jobs and marketing executive Joanna Hoffman (Winslet) dealing with problems before the Apple Macintosh launch in 1984. The computer's voice demo will not say "hello", and Jobs demands engineer Andy Hertzfeld (Stuhlbarg) fixes it, threatening to publicly humiliate him in the presentation. Hertzfeld finally suggests faking the demo using the prototype 512k computer. Meanwhile, Jobs rants about a Time magazine article that exposed his paternity dispute with ex-girlfriend Chrisann Brennan (Waterson): Jobs denies he is the father of Brennan's five-year-old daughter, Lisa. Brennan arrives with Lisa to confront Jobs; she is bitter over his denials and his refusal to support her despite his wealth. Jobs bonds with Lisa over her MacPaint art and agrees to provide more money and a house, though he still denies his fatherhood. Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak (Rogen) wishes Jobs well and asks him to acknowledge the Apple II team in his remarks, but Jobs refuses. Flashbacks show the two creating the Apple II, revealing that Wozniak's ideas made the product successful. Jobs then discusses company politics with CEO John Sculley (Daniels); they talk about Jobs' life as an adopted child, and Jobs admits that his need for control stems from his feelings of powerlessness in being given up. A montage shows that the Macintosh failed to meet expectations and the struggling company ousted Jobs, who founded NeXT. The film's second act portrays Jobs preparing for the NeXT Computer launch in 1988. He spends time with a 9-year-old Lisa, whom he now acknowledges. Lisa's life with Brennan is difficult, and Jobs accuses Brennan of behaving erratically and using Lisa to get money from him. Wozniak arrives to support Jobs in what he predicts will be another disastrous launch; Jobs confronts him over quotes in which Wozniak criticized Jobs' difficult attitude. Wozniak admits his frustration with Jobs' self-aggrandizement, questioning his contributions. Jobs likens his own role to a conductor, who directs "musicians" like Wozniak. Hertzfeld shows Jobs a parody press release about Apple buying NeXT for its operating system and naming Jobs CEO. Sculley appears, challenging the developing narrative that he fired Jobs. Flashbacks reveal that Sculley warned Jobs that Apple's board was unhappy with him, but Jobs approached them anyway, forcing the vote that ousted him. Meanwhile, Hoffman and Jobs discuss NeXT's unclear direction; Hoffman realizes that Jobs has indeed designed the computer to entice Apple to buy the company. Another montage shows that Apple continued to decline; the company fired Sculley, purchased NeXT, and named Jobs CEO. The third act portrays Jobs preparing to premier the iMac in 1998. Jobs is having a spat with teenaged Lisa, who has allowed Brennan to sell the house Jobs bought for them. Hoffman reminds Jobs that he threatened to withhold Lisa's college tuition; he claims he did not mean it. Hertzfeld reveals that he paid Lisa's tuition and suggested she attend therapy, stunning Jobs. Wozniak once again asks that Jobs credit the Apple II team at the launch, but Jobs still refuses. Sculley then arrives in secret and the two make amends. An exasperated Hoffman insists that Jobs fixes things with Lisa. Jobs apologizes to Lisa for his past mistakes, admitting that he is "poorly made". The film ends with Lisa watching her father taking the stage to introduce the iMac. Cast *Michael Fassbender as Steve Jobs, co-founder of Apple Inc. *Kate Winslet as Joanna Hoffman, marketing executive for Apple and NeXT and Jobs' confidant in the film. *Seth Rogen as Steve Wozniak, co-founder of Apple and creator of the Apple II. *Jeff Daniels as John Sculley, CEO of Apple from 1983 to 1993. *Katherine Waterston as Chrisann Brennan, Jobs' former girlfriend and Lisa's mother. *Michael Stuhlbarg as Andy Hertzfeld, a member of the original Mac team. *Perla Haney-Jardine, Ripley Sobo, and Makenzie Moss as Lisa Brennan-Jobs (at different ages), the daughter of Steve Jobs and Chrisann Brennan. *Sarah Snook as Andrea "Andy" Cunningham, manager of the Macintosh and iMac launches. *Adam Shapiro as Avie Tevanian, software engineer for NeXT and later Apple. *John Ortiz as Joel Pforzheimer, a journalist for GQ who interviews Jobs throughout the film. External links * Category:Films Category:2015 release Category:Drama Films Category:Kate Winslet films